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Cyber Espionage

In an age where the internet has become an essential and dependent part of everyday life, information and data is constantly being added at an almost inconceivably fast rate every second. With the constant evolution and implementation of technology in society an influx of data is being converted to the internet and the use of hard-copies to computers. Conversely to this, the number of people trying illegally to acquire this information has escalated.

One of the largest increases that has been seen with storing information electronically is the surge in cyber espionage. Cyber espionage can be defined as the use of computer networks to gain illicit access to confidential information that is typically held by a government or other organization (Oxford). It can affect almost anyone at any time, whether by means of information stolen or slandering individuals, Corporations, or Governments. The declassification of private information leaked through cyber espionage has also become a reality for government and corporate agencies.

Corporations, as most are becoming dependent on the use of the internet to store data, are at an elevated risk for cyberattacks. As of right now there are an estimated thirty million businesses and one point seven million C. corporations (Hodge). While there are a small amount of large corporations, most businesses are within the realm of the small propriety owned type. No matter how big or how small, both are vulnerable to the same types of espionage. Larger corporations, however, may have the advantage when it comes to being victims of cyber espionage. For example a very large company such as Walmart, which has about 4,520 stores just in the United States alone, can be expected to have far more resources and money than a company such Ollie’s which to deal with cyber-attacks and prevention. Being a company comparable to that of Walmart’s size would make it more difficult to be hacked but if it were compromised more would be at stake and the harder it would be to remedy the situation. When such situations arise thousands of people have the potential of being affected.